Through The Worlds To You
by Noelle Strife
Summary: "It was on that fateful day, the day that started it all, that I got into this mess." Noel, a young teacher with an obsession for video games, was suddenly transported inside the world of Final Fantasy VII! What will he do? Wiil he be able to experience adventure, true friendship, loyalty, even love? Join him in his adventures with AVALANCHE to save the planet! Self-insert/OC.
1. Save File 1

AN: Hello everyone! This is Noelle Strife speaking. Welcome to my first self-insert of Final Fantasy VII! Wooo! Yeah~! I was truly inspired by acebrainbuster's 'The Stranger From The Sky' and Botoingness's 'Chosen' which by far are the most excellent self-inserts I ever read. Granted, my self-insert (which by the way is a guy coz it's more cool to be like that) Noel will be on first person point of view so that it won't be that hard. Also, I have taken up the liberty of choosing an FFVII girl for him so, yeah. Go male me!

If any of you have noticed, I use the words 'Save File' as Chapters, since it will be more fitting from now on.

Disclaimer: Don't own FFVII, just me, myself, and I.

Alright here we go! Don't forget to review after this! If you don't then the hell's wrong with you? Wait, that was a joke, okay?

* * *

Through The Worlds To You  
_by Noelle Strife_

Save File One

It was on that fateful day, the day that started it all, that I got into this mess.

Let's go ten hours before that. My name's Noel, just that's fine. I'm 20 years old and I'm living in a beat up apartment in the Philippines. Oddly enough, I have emerald green eyes and brown mousse hair for a Filipino. I guess some foreign blood got mixed up in the family tree. But as a Filipino, I got that slightly browned skin of a _kayumangi_. Anyway, I have a job as a teacher at a renowned school at Laguna. Another odd thing about me is that I'm too young to be a teacher. Oddity's always at my side so, there you have it. I'm currently an avid gamer, not to mention a computer geek and an amateur when it comes to computer engineering. I have a pet Ascal dog, Leeroy, who's really not right in the head since it accidentally knocked itself over a wall last week. Well, that's pretty much about me being me…

The morning I woke it was already raining. Typical of this tropical country to be raining at the middle of July. Today's Saturday, so no work for me today. I slowly got up from bed, washed my face to get the sleep off, and prepared my breakfast. Living alone (the dog does not count) has its charms. I worry only for myself and of course for Leeroy but mostly about myself. Not to sound like some damn egosistical jackass, that's what I am. Father's dead, mom's nearly retired from her work, older sis is married to Jackson, other older sis is out touring the world, and younger bro's getting used to school now. Here I am, frying nearly burnt eggs and bacon, trying to balance my own life. But hey, like I said, living alone has its charms…

I figured I'd go walk Leeroy today, but rain's negating the shit. No matter, I think I should go through the test papers of my class. …Fat chance, all I get will be the usual failing marks from the normal ones and the perfect tens from those smart-alecs. After breakfast, I immediately took my wallet, my black-and-white headphones and mp3, phone, and the keys to my apartment. I was wearing a black windbreaker with my zepar yellow t-shirt and navy pants, plus I'm wearing my Converse shoes which I'm slightly proud of. This is not my usual wear in this hot and dusty country; I would've died in heat exhaustion here. No, this was given to me from my older sis (the other one) when she was at America and it was just for the weather. I waved half-heartedly to my pet, got out and locked the front door. From here on out, I commute to other places. The rain softly came down from the sky as I got on a bus departing to a park at the middle of the city. I placed on my headphones, listening quietly to the beat.

To be honest, I wasn't actually aiming for the park. Hell, there wasn't even a park inside the city; it's just crammed with traffic, noise, and people. No, the first place I visited was a computer shop somewhere at the outskirts of Manila. It was small and dingy, with only a few computers to be used and a small window showing the smogged-up sky. "Oy, welcome back, Noel. I finished fixing the CD; it should work fine already." A rugged young man held up a small disc for my PlayStation one; Final Fantasy VII. It was considered Square Enix's jewel since it was a block busting hit in the video game genre, initially making Enix as the king of RPG.

I know, pretty nerdy of me, huh?

I grinned at the owner while I handed a few bills to pay up. "Thanks." I said as I pocketed the disk and rushed out again, into the fucked up city and back to my peaceful apartment. While on the bus, I was listening to my headphones again when I heard something. I raised a brow since it wasn't really embedded in the song, but it was a soft, faint voice, calling out to me in a gentle whisper:

"_Noel… Noel…"_

I shook my head and closed my eyes. To feel this mania once again, I can't help but curse my weak stature. I was born with low immunity so I always get sick and tired. Asthma's my number one problem when I was a kid, but to this day, I was able to counter it with sports and some swimming. That voice though, is really pissing me off. Before I could get really pissed, I realized the voice was a female's, and it was a bit familiar to me…

"_Noel… P-please…"_

My thoughts were interrupted when the bus screeched to a halt in front of my stop. Shakily, I got out and strode back to my apartment, briefly saying hello to my neighbor who was out to her work. The rain's heavy now, raining cats and dogs is more like it. I was soaking wet as I shivered violently. Even though my windbreaker provided the small warmth it never did anything to comfort me in this situation. You must think I'm crazy to go out in a stormy day just to get a game, right?

"Damn, it's cold…" My teeth chattered as I fumbled with my keys and unlocked my door. Surprisingly, Leeroy didn't bound at me or greet me. He was asleep on the rug at the kitchen. In my rush and excitement, I completely forgot about my cold and quickly went towards my old console, the PlayStation One. I opened up the lid, placed in the much awaited game, closed it, and readied my controller. Don't get me wrong, I already played FFVII so I'm not a newbie (I'm too cool for that), it's just that after the game I decided to play it once again, only to end up with a broken disk and I had someone repair it for me. Now that it's here again, I could finally get back on my gear and forget about my miserable, normal life, forget about my worthless job teaching students who won't care, forget about all of the things in this world, which I regretted and guilted over it. I waited excitedly for the startup screen, my eyes lighting up in giddiness.

Suddenly, the sky boomed an earsplitting lightning roar which scared the shit out of me. Thunder growled as rain pelted some more at the windows, making it look like someone was washing it with thick water. Chocobos began appearing from the Square Soft logo when I flinched at another crack of lightning. It flashed from my window that was too damn near me! I was frowning but I didn't mind it; I was already at the menu screen, where Cloud's lone Buster Sword stood in the middle of the spotlight. A little lightning can't ruin my gaming mode right now.

"Didn't know there's a storm right now…" I motioned for Leeroy to sit next to me, but the dog's nowhere to be seen. Okay, now this is getting weird now. Just as Aeris's face appeared at the screen with green glow came another flash of lightning. This time, I heard the roar as if it was right next to me. Unfortunately, it IS right next to me!

I couldn't remember what happened next. I know that you could calculate the distance of a lightning bolt when it touches the ground by counting the seconds before you could hear the sound. I know that the lightning is extremely dangerous when the seconds that you counted would be three, which is what I counted. I didn't scream as the bolt hit my tiny apartment, I didn't make a sound when the electricity flowed right out of my TV and zapped me with its excruciating charge, I never once opened my eyes when I felt the pain fight its way through me and how impossibly bright it was that seeped through my closed eye lids. It was all I could think about; my fingers felt the disintegration of my controller as I gave in and let god take me wherever I'm supposed to go now.

* * *

When I regained consciousness, the first thing that came into my mind is that I feel cold. AGAIN..! "Fuck…what happened..?" I groaned to myself as I clenched my hands. I felt a bit stiff, probably from all that electric shock that was zapped inside of me. My head was pounding. Seriously, I feel like shit. Like I was just someone fresh in the hospital. Although I could still move my body, my mind is in a jumble.

I slowly opened my eyes. They widened in surprise (Wait, did that just rhymed..?) as I took in my surroundings. I'm not in my apartment anymore. Apparently, I'm in some street outside, the air was thick with pollution, one which I was forced to cough a bit. It was still raining, the water pouring steadily, albeit okay from the storm that I reckoned that passed. I realized I was propped up on a street lamp, looking like a piece of trash. I groaned again as I facepalmed.

Wait, I shouldn't be worried about that! What I should be worried is that I, my dog and my apartment was hit by a lightning bolt! A lightning bolt for fuck's sake! I sighed as I turned around to observe my environment. It's kinda… gloomy. Wait, scratch that, it's wild and chaotic. There are some bright lights lighting up the streets while people in drab clothing milled here and about. I looked around some more. Now that I can see properly, I was surprised to know that I'm not familiar with this area. Usually, I know my way around Laguna and Manila, but now, it was nowhere damn near the places that I knew. Everything looks hectic, and wait, was that..?

I stopped motioning my head as my green eyes hit the thing dead on. It was a bill board of LOVELESS, the play in the game. I stared at it as my jaw drop. There are many more posters about LOVELESS; some were even on marquees while others were pasted on brick walls. Now that I noticed it, the vehicles seemed a bit off too. I was used to four wheels and three wheels for the tricycles, but A CAR HAS THREE WHEELS?! That's freaking insane now…

I don't even want to think anymore. All I could think about now, is that a giant, looming structure is now in front of me, bearing the logo I never once forgot since I played the game: "Shinra Electric Power Company"

* * *

I found myself in an alley, shamelessly throwing up. Midgar… This is Midgar. No way in hell that this is Midgar! I wiped my sweaty face with the back of my hand as I threw up again. Okay, recap: I was gonna play FFVII, got hit by lightning, and then I was mysteriously teleported inside the video game. Hell, I can't even make sure if I'm inside the game or not. Pressing my back against the wall, I slumped down to the ground as I groaned again heavily. I caught sight of the Shinra logo once more and felt sick. How am I going to get home? More importantly, am I ever going to get home? My shaking hands roamed the ground to get a better perspective. Trash, some leftovers of my sick, few rocks and dust, yes, I'm in the game alright. I banged my head at the wall, feeling incredibly stupid to play under a lightning storm.

I checked through my pockets. Yes, I still have my wallet, my phone, my mp3, and my headphones were still clipped on my neck. All are still on a working condition, even when my headphones are wet, they're still working. Even when I was struck by lightning, everything managed to stay the same when I entered the game.

Wait, if this really is the game, and I'm in Midgar, then that means… I stood up the newfound revelation as I stormed off the alleyway. I was determined to find her. If she's here, then everything's true. I sprinted into the street, my eyes finding a flash of that color. LOVELESS Avenue, so I'm at Sector Eight, near the Shinra building. At this time, she may be here, selling flowers.

My green eyes finally found the familiar flash of pink in the sea of grey and pollution. I was overjoyed to see her (translation: thrilled). It was still raining and she's holding a pink umbrella up to keep her safe from the wetness. She has brunette locks that were tied into a long braid, keeping it secured with a pink bow and a heavily hidden materia. Her long pink dress looked nice on her; it shaped her curves really well that I realized I was red in the face just staring at it. A basket of flowers in hand and the other holding onto the umbrella. She has the most wonderful set of forest green eyes I ever seen. Yeah, you could say that I'm also a nerdy Aeris fan boy, but damn…

This really is Final Fantasy VII.

I know what you're thinking. I should be happy that I'm inside the game and that I should help the team and save the world. But I'm just a normal person. I can't do magic nor have the strength to wield a sword, only 'they' do that. You may think I'm overly dramatic but I'm just being realistic.

Wait, how can I be realistic when I'm in a game..?

I smacked my face at the thought. Dammnit, this is too frustrating. I don't know what to do. Should I go with the flow of the story or should I find a way back home? Now that I think about it, what timeline am I in the story right now? Is this the part where AVALANCHE is going to do the bombing missions or before that?

"Ah, shit… This is so messed up…" I cursed loudly while I ignored the stares from the citizens. To also make it clear that I'm in the game, there are some MPs littered around here. Some were patrolling, others were bullying some of the residents, while a few were just lazying around. I realized I was already soaking wet if not for an umbrella that took place over me. I turn my head to see who did it and I was surprised to see Aeris giving me a worried expression, "Are you all right, sir?" She whispered softly while I just stared. Aeris cosplayers back at my world couldn't even be compared to her. Her eyes are big and full of life while her lips curved into a small yet concerned smile.

_Cute… _"Y-yeah… Just a bit lost hehe." I let out a nervous laugh as I rubbed the back of my head. Aeris stared at me then giggled as well.

"My name is Aeris Gainsborough. What's yours?" Whoa, introductions already? Well, just go with the flow then…

"Noel. Just Noel, Miss Aeris." I managed to crack one of my goofy grins at her while I held my head to keep me from my goddamn mania.

"Okay, Noel. Just Aeris, then. Is this your first time in Midgar?" She asked as we moved to shelter our heads. The cold is still there, but I'm starting to warm up already. Aeris helped me sit on a bench in front of a store as she shook the water off my dress.

"Hm, you could say that." I was scratching my head again and thought about my home back in the Philippines. "I'm looking for a job though." Okay, that's a good start. The flower girl nodded at me while closing her umbrella.

"What's that on your neck?" She pointed to my black and white headphones while I instantly moved to touch it. "Er, it's something that makes me listen to music." I said carefully, warily trying to hide the headphones from view. Darn, those eyes are just freezing me in place that I don't know what to do.

"Where are you from?" Oh shoot. I know somebody's gonna ask me that soon. I shifted my eyes, trying to get a backwater town name.

"Uh, Gonggaga… I lived there for as long as my life." I gave her a toothy grin when her face fell into a short frown that I now realized my mistake. _I'm such an ass! That's where Zack used to live! _I cleared my throat as I looked away, determined to change the subject. "So, um, do you know where I could get to Sector Seven Train Station, Aeris?" I asked her as polite as I could. I have this hunch that I know at what timeline I am in. Aeris smiled brightly at me, which inexplicably made me turn red, again, as she took my hand and guided me through the busy streets of LOVELESS Avenue.

* * *

I always wondered what it's like to be inside a video game.

When Aeris showed me the way, I wasn't shocked at how big Midgar is. The game only shows specific places that Cloud needs to go to, some were very important like the plaza where he first met Aeris, or Tifa's Seventh Heaven bar. Others were less important or just red herrings like the poor people's houses at Sector Five and other places with no treasure or loot. There were people of different sizes and shapes, people with a mix of languages and curses, people with different skins and eye color. It was bizarre to think that I was different from them because I already looked the part of an ordinary citizen of this city. My face was rugged and a bit dirty from throwing up in an alley and my clothes were a bit soaked from the rain, which thankfully stopped into a drizzle. I wish I was right about my hunch; otherwise I have to backtrack again and figure out where Cloud is right now.

Aeris stopped walking at a train platform while I stopped as well. It's pretty much midnight already from the huge clock overlooking the station. A sleepy train conductor stood by the opened train doors, trying his best to stay awake. "You just take this train to Sector Seven's station." She motioned to the transportation which I nodded. There was kinda an awkward silence after that. I made a sideways glance at her with my hand at the back of my neck. I then noticed the flower basket again.

An idea suddenly formed in my mind, "Hey, those flowers…" I crossed my arms, Cloud-style, and motioned my head to the pretty little things. Aeris brought it up near her chest and beamed proudly. "Oh, these? They're only a Gil…" Oh, crap I forgot that the currency is Gil here… Oh well, time to improvise, "Hm, how about I buy one, for a date?" Huh, where did those words came from? I paid no attention to it as I continued to grin at her, whose mouth gaped in shock then closed as she blushed.

"Pretty smooth there, Romeo."

"Well, I guarantee you that those words are only for you, Juliet." Score one for me! Aeris blushed red again, giggling as she covered her mouth with her hand. I waited patiently for her to answer. Okay, I may be an Aeris fan boy, but damn, she looks hot.

"Okay then." Woohoo! The flower girl rummaged in her basket and produced, what looked like a yellow lily. I know her favorites are white and yellow lilies so I wasn't surprised. I took the delicate flower into my hands when I leaned down to her good smelling head, and kissed the soft locks. She gasped just as I pulled back and patted her shoulder with a smile.

"See ya around, my flower lady." I walked into the train and waved at her, earning me another blush and a shy wave. Alright, time to see Cloud and the rest of AVALANCHE.

* * *

AN: Yes I've only managed to get it at the 3,000 word spree, so I might've sucked out the first chapter. I'm already working on the second one, where Noel will finally join AVALANCHE and meet the main characters, particularly Cloud, Tifa, Barret, you know the drill. Plus, there'll be a lot of twists and turns here, and depending what I feel will fall in the chapter. That's just how I write, people!

Please don't forget to review! If I'm going to be inspired, it will be coming from you, dear reader/reviewer. That will just be fifteen seconds of your life I promise!

Thanks for reading 'Through The Worlds To You'

~Noelle Strife


	2. Save File 2

**AN:** Welcome back everyone! Well, I just posted it and I'm in the middle of proofreading this. It has been a week now, yes? I wish my story will hit the top ranks soon since that was my original goal…

**Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy VII**, just me, myself, and I.

**To Lethum:** (First Reviewer!) Thanks for your review! But, I think you typed it wrong, it was Aeris, not Tifa who I will pair to my OC. However, I won't only pair him with Aeris, but also with Tifa, Yuffie, even Elena and a few more. Then again, it's my first time to write a self-insert in FFVII so thank you again for your review and your criticism!

**To ****EmperorPalamecia**: Thank you so much for your review. When I went back to check my first chapter I was shocked to see that I overdid the swear words too much, especially with the scene with Aeris. Yes, it was a bit rushed because I think I was too 'excited' to make this since I made it in a day, so I will just replace with a more decent one. Thank you for reminding me with the describing words so I will type more about it from now on. And no, I won't forget that Noel was just a normal person, so no firaga spells or comet at the first few chapters. However, he **is **a very special character, and I'll just leave that teaser up to this point so, yeah.

Please read and review, thanks!

Enjoy Save File No. 2

**~Noelle Strife**

* * *

Through The Worlds To You  
_by Noelle Strife_

Save File Two

Somewhere at the Slums of Sector Five, a tall and huge figure stopped in his tracks. His silver eyebrows were furrowed in confusion as he turned to look back at the trail he took. Nothing was there, but he felt as if a presence just alerted him.

_**What's the matter, my son..?**_

The figure started to walk again, his long sword at his side to kill off anything that stood in his path. There was a tremendous power force that just appeared a few hours ago, but he was a little unsure on what it is. Whatever it is, it made his mother agitated and also confused as well. That energy he just felt was very strong, but mother told him not to pay any heed at it.

"It's nothing, Mother. Let's continue our way."

At that, the figure briskly went into a corner and disappeared.

* * *

"This place's a dump." I said sarcastically at the train conductor, who bowed apologetically. "We're very sorry sir. This is the last train." I snorted as I sat back on my seat and gazed outside. The train's slowing down, so I figured I'm nearly there. Ignoring the conductor's apologies, I quickly walked out of the car when it finally stopped. The rain was thinning out, probably because of the plate above which was secluding the place into its smoke and darkness. I pulled my windbreaker closer to me now as I stuffed my hands into its warm pockets.

Just as I got out of the car then I realized something was wrong.

There was a dog barking loudly, and its snout was pointing at the direction I was looking at. Another train conductor was standing next to another man, checking to see if he's all right. And that man had spiky, blond hair and a blue glow from his eyes.

"Oh my god, that's Cloud!" I rushed over to them and knelt next to the blond. Damn, he looks half-dead! Wait, I have to stay optimistic..! I then began to hoist him up on his feet. Cloud grunted oddly and I was also wondering why he can't stand up straight. I noticed the huge sword latched on to his back. Holy Crap..! It's the Buster Sword! THE Buster Sword given to Zack from Angeal, and then given to Cloud from Zack! You can imagine how excited I am when I saw it. It was twice as big as a regular sword, albeit heavier than the rest. I couldn't take my eyes away from it. It's so awesome I could die happy right now!

"Hey man, you're getting heavy here." It was my turn to grunt as I supported him. Hm, now that I noted it, I'm actually taller than Cloud. I read it on Wikipedia that his height will be somewhere at 5'7. So I'm a foot taller than him, huh, what a surprise. "W..what..?" Oh god finally he spoke. I managed to at least smile a little when I made him sit at the steps. The conductor went away to fulfill his duties and the dog also departed.

"Heh, you're lucky I saw you here, unless you want to be found by the Turks and then taken away to SOLDIER." My grin was short lived when I saw the glow coming from his eyes. I was then taken aback by its sheer awesomeness. Damn, never met someone with a deep set of blue such as this. "SOLDIER…" He muttered as he clutched onto his head. Oh, right. I almost forgot Cloud has his own issues of mania as well.

"I…was one of…them…"

"One of what now?"

"SOLDIER."

I stared at him, crossing my arms. This is kinda like the part where Tifa will find him, but the question is, where's Tifa right now?

"Cloud..?"

Speak of the devil…

I turned around and my gaze met hers. I have to say this here right now, that Tifa's pretty. And I mean real pretty. Her raven hair was long enough to reach her waist while her amber eyes were wide with surprise. She has the biggest bust I ever seen, and I noticed how short her clothes are. This is really weird; were there any perverts here in FFVII except for Don Corneo?! "Oh my goodness, Cloud!" She hurried over to his other side while I myself looked worried as well.

"He's your friend, miss?" Tifa practically ignored me as she held onto the ex-SOLDIER. "Cloud, Cloud! It's me, Tifa!" At the sound of her name, the blond slowly looked at Tifa with his eye turning back to normal. "Tifa..?" I was almost glad to have him back to normal when I forgot that we haven't even formally met.

_So much for the introductions… _"Tifa! How have you been? It's me, Cloud!" And just like that, Cloud's mania puffed out into thin smoke and disappeared. His childhood friend, however, was overjoyed to see him alive. "Cloud! It's you!" Tifa hugged him close, while I stood in the background, awkwardly rubbing the back of my neck. What should I do now? Help Cloud get to Seventh Heaven and ask to join AVALANCHE? No way, that will be too damn suspicious…

"How long has it been? Five years, right?" Oh no, hell no! This is the part where Tifa's gonna be confused at Cloud's story. There's no way I can't stop this now. This is one of the crucial parts of the story.

"…Cloud…" _Hang in there, please Tifa. Be strong, please. _"Welcome home." Wait, that's it? Tifa was beginning to help Cloud on his feet again when I started to lend a hand as well. "Let me help." I said simply just as the girl nodded at him. Due to the extra manpower from me, we were able to get the weak ex-SOLDIER off the platform and into the direction of Tifa's bar, Seventh Heaven.

"By the way," Tifa looked over to me while we were carrying Cloud, "My name's Tifa Lockheart. This is Cloud Strife." She motioned to the already sleeping form. I nodded at her while I adjusted my shoulder. "Noel. Just Noel's fine. Nice to meet you Tifa. I would've shook hands with you if not for the load." I gave off my toothy grin while she looked apologetic.

"I'm sorry but it's for a good cause." I hid my laugh at how motherly she sounded. We cut the talking time when we're already here.

Sector Seven is even gloomier than Sector Eight. It reminded me of the squatters back at Laguna. Houses were made from iron scraps and wooden studs while makeshift lights dimly lit the cluttered streets. Smoke and nervous tension filled the place as we half carried, half dragged Cloud up to Tifa's bar.

The bar outside looked as clumped up as it was like the house outside as well, but when we got inside, I couldn't help but marvel the place. Everything's clean and shiny, the chairs were arranged orderly by the tables while a pinball machine stood in the right side of the place. The shelves were stocked with wine and alcohol, cocktails and rum. It's a drinking haven here. "Let's put him here." Tifa gestured to a chair near the pinball machine. I was kinda hoping for the room down below but I knew I wasn't a member of AVALANCHE just yet. Me and the bar lady propped up Cloud onto the chair as we both wiped the sweat from our brows.

"Whew, that guy sure is heavy. Seems that he's got a lot more muscle than I thought." I stretched up my arms and yawned. Wow, I didn't know I was this sleepy. But then again, it was midnight and way past my curfew. Tifa gave off a tired smile towards me, "Yes, he was in SOLDIER alright." The tone of her voice just blew it off but I went along with it as I beamed back at her.

"Want me to serve you a drink?" Now that seemed to be a great idea.

My silly grin never left my face. "Yeah, sure. Shot of brandy then." Tifa nodded as I sat on one of the bar stools. It's really comfortable here, I like the atmosphere. No wonder the Seventh Heaven bar was as famous as what the game says. My fingers drummed over the polished table top, trying to think of my next move. Just when I was about to succumb to total boredom, the door of the bar opened and a little girl in a pink dress entered the bar. When I studied her, I relaxed for a bit. No doubt that this is Marlene, Barret's daughter, well, adopted daughter.

"Hey, Tifa!" The little girl bounced up excitedly, but then became nervous at the sight of me. She looked exactly the same as I pictured her, small, bright brown eyes, her hair cropped to shape her chubby face, she looked like every bubbly child I came across with. Seeing that Marlene was distracted by me, Tifa cleared her throat to get my attention and brought me my drink. "Enjoy." She said dryly as she waved Marlene over to her. Deciding not to bother the kid anymore, I went back to my drink and took a tentative sip. …What the hell?! This tastes better than at the brothel bars back home.

While I was amazed by my drink, Marlene pointed at Cloud, "What's wrong with him?" She asked childishly. Tifa let out a sigh as she shrugged, "New member." I quickly looked up from my drink and shot a stare at her.

"Do you mean about AVALANCHE?" She then stared back at me, her eyes sharp. Oh shit, I think I pissed her off because of that stupid slip-up. I went back to my drink, sweating buckets as the bar abruptly became quiet.

Oh man oh man oh man! What should I do? Talk my way out of it? Nah, she'll beat the crap out of me. Fight her? …She'll totally beat the crap out of me. I placed my hands over my head to think some more when a kick was connected to the back of my head and sent me flying.

"SHIT!" I yelled as I smashed my body against the bottled drinks at the shelves in front of me. I slid down to the floor with a loud thump. "Damn, that hurt!" My mouth was a little numb but I forced it out anyway. I heard footsteps came by and a hand grabbed a fistful of my shirt and pulled me up high. I was afraid that this would happen; them freaking out that I nearly spat out information about AVALANCHE.

"Who are you?! How did you know about the terrorists?! Are you from Shinra?!" Tifa shouted fiercely, shaking me shitless. Crap, this way worse than I could've imagined. Wait, was it that obvious that I know so much about them?

I gulped my anxious feeling before spitting it out again. Tifa was glaring at me so hard it was like gazing at the sun. "W-wait! T-this is just a m-m-misunderstanding!" Yeah, I know. I'm a crappy stutter freak. However, before she could say anything, my hand instantly took her wrist and it easily wrung her off of me. It was all a blur as said hand turned into a vice-like grip and used that power to throw her across the room. I was just as shocked as the kid and her. "What..?" Both Tifa and I said out loud. She was surprised at my strength, while I am too. She was hanging dazedly on top of a broken table, dumbfounded at me. I tilted my head to look at my hand. It looked completely normal enough, so how does that explain that I threw off a martial arts brawler across the room?!

Tifa quickly got up from her spot with a fist ready. Damn! If I get hit by that, I will surely die before we beat up Seph! My body tensed up for the upcoming pain, but all I could feel is that the wind blowing towards my face and my whole being instantly moved to the side to avoid her falcon punch. I felt a headache coming to me, but I ignored it and I continued to follow my body's being. Ducking her punch, it gave me the advantage to throw a roundhouse kick at her. The young woman, obviously astonished by that trick, doubled up in pain, but stood up again. I don't know how I'm doing it, but at least I'm not beat up yet. And I don't want to hurt Tifa, but clearly she wanted to hurt me. I panted a bit as I clutched onto my chest with ragging breaths. I don't know if I can make it tonight; my asthma's kicking up and I don't have my inhaler with me right now. Truthfully, I half-wished for Tifa to finish me off now before I bend over.

Almost as if she listened to my wishes, the raven haired girl side-stepped to avoid another one of my mysterious kickboxing techniques and performed an incredibly awesome somersault. Her Limit Break. One of her legs hit my chin upwards as I felt myself soar to the ceiling. The other one followed up to hit me, well, really hit me at the crotch! "OH MY FU-!" I screamed as my body collided to the rounded tables, my hands at my manhood to cover the pain. I bawled there, clearly out of breath, as I clutched on painfully. A shadow loomed over me, and the last thing I saw is a fist coming straight at me and my vision blacked out.

* * *

Tifa was physically and mentally exhausted from this battle with the mysterious stranger. She stood up from her spot, panting exasperatedly. Marlene slowly and cautiously emerged from her hiding place and approached the fatigued bar lady. "Tifa, are you alright?" She asked her wearily. Tifa gazed at the child then turned back at the brown haired young man.

"I'm fine, Marlene." She gave her a small smile while affectionately patting her head. She moved back up to Cloud and was relieved to see him safe from their brawl. He was propped up in a chair, still fast asleep. She will have to talk to Barret about recruiting him to AVALANCHE, and about _him…_

Tifa stared long and hard at the young man, who was still unconscious on a mess of broken tables and chairs. His mouth was slightly opened while the corner of it had a small trickle of blood flowing slowly down his chin. If not for the blood, and if she dare say it, he actually looked adorable, almost like a kid. He has mousse brown hair that was too thick and was styled commonly like Cloud's, although it was thicker but shorter version of a certain chocobo head. And whenever she looked at him, his eyes reminded him of a colored gem, emerald. However, when they fought, those calm eyes were blazing with fire and animosity.

Tifa shivered at the thought of him as a monster like Sephiroth, who destroyed her hometown many years ago. If he really is a monster, that showed her what a monster was like in battle, then she doesn't know what to do anymore. Something poked at her leg while she looked down to know what it is. It was a broomstick handle, and Marlene was smiling at her while holding it. "Time to clean up, Tifa." Realizing that the bar looked like a total wreck, the bar lady let out a soft giggle as she ruffled Marlene's hair and picked up the broom, ready to clean up and wait for Barret and the others to get home.

"Oh, yes…" She then turned back to the stranger who brought Cloud in with her. "Have to tie him up somewhere…"

* * *

"Daaaaaaamn… What happened..?" I groaned as I started to wake up. The first thing I noticed is that I feel so stiff like a wooden board. There was a head ache coming up so I winced horribly. That was when I noticed why I feel so stiff is because I was tied to a punching bag with thick rope covering my entire body, save for my head. If I tried so much to move, I can't. How long was I out to make my body go under this..?

"Hey, you're awake!" There was an unfamiliar voice that sounded in front of me. Blearily, I raised my head to the source. My vision's still blurry as fogged glass, but I can make out three figures in front of me. As the seconds passed, I could see more clearly now. I noticed that I'm in some kind of room with the scent of sweat, sawdust, and wet metal. There are some scraps of iron jumbled together to make a metal table while there are some boxes around it. A TV was perched at a corner, showing Midgar Channel Seven News about a blown up mako reactor. Computers and other high tech stuff were lined up on one side of the wall, where the other side near me has a huge whiteboard with a detailed drawing of a map. Now that I can see better, I let my gaze fall on the three persons in the room. "Man, you slept like a log. You even beat Barret's record!" Said a guy about my age who has a red band at his forehead. He has brown gelled-up hair and wears gauntlets and light armor. He was grinning at me while fists on his hips. I blinked rapidly at the sight of him. Was that… Biggs..?

"H-hey, shouldn't we k-keep information f-from him..?" Said a smaller, rather round young man, a red bandana covering his hair. He looked a bit worried and out of place. Although his hair was covered, I could make out that it was black because of the two, thick strands of hair poking out of it. He had quite a build, and damn, he has grenades at his belt! I was confused at his look, coz' I expected Wedge to be a bit more, what's the general manner for this, rolly polly..?

There was a small sigh coming from the third person, which I already presumed as Jessie. I was shocked to see her so young! She has the face of a regular high school student back on Earth, but the body and stature of a soldier. She has Aeris's style of hair where there are two, long side-bangs at either side of her face. Armor, shoulder pads, and gauntlets covered her body while a thin, red band was tied up to her forehead. _She looks cute. _"Well, Tifa's still doting over Cloud and Barret's out to get Marlene from school, so I think it's fine to get acquainted with our _guest _here." She spat out venomously. I furrowed my eyebrows at her. I never knew she can actually be my type of girl; a badass, kickass girl who is not only hot and cute, but has knowledge in bombs and computers too.

_I'm in heaven~! _"You sure know how to treat your guests' right…" I snarled, before giving her a wink. Jessie did a double take at me, and then her face flushed in embarrassment. I really know how to score chicks, huh… "Says the one who nearly beat one of our friends up." Biggs' grin faltered as he frowned at me and at Jessie. The girl just turned away with a blush and faced the pinball machine while crossing her arms. Wow, did I really cause too much damage on Tifa last night? And my strength, where did that come from..?

Wedge walked nearer towards me and asked, "How about you tell us your story and we tell you ours?" The other two terrorists looked up at the round one in shock.

"Wedge, what the hell are you doing?!"

"We're not allowed to do that..!"

"…What are you implying..?" I questioned quietly, my brows still scrunched up. He just shrugged at me as he waved his hand. "Well, from Tifa's description of you, you were really powerful last night, albeit a bit stupid." Ouch, that bruised my ego. I glared at him when he continued on, "We just wanna know if you're from Shinra or not. You tell us the truth about you, and we'll probably let you go." I eyed him suspiciously for a bit before I heaved a sigh. I really do want to get out of these ropes, but the most important thing I should do here is go with their adventure. If I'm going to explain some things to them, best not to let them know when I'm still here.

I sighed again as I closed my eyes, thinking about my home. "…My name's Noel. Just that's fine. I used to live in Gonggaga, and I came to Midgar to look for a job." Nice one. Those are the exact same words I used on Aeris. Wedge urged me to go on as I stiffly nodded.

"I used to live with my family, with my mother, my two older sisters, and a younger brother. My father's dead so I'm left to make a living for my family." So far so good. I kinda like my own made-up version of a terrible life. "One day, a mako reactor that was planted near the town, exploded, killing my family and my friends. I was one of the few survivors of the place, so when Shinra found me, they took me to Junon to get medication. I left the place and set my sights at Midgar, and here I am, getting my ass served and tied to a punching bag." I shot at them while I tried to wiggle my way out, which unfortunately, came unsuccessful. The three looked at each other then huddled in a corner to talk about me. I can only catch glimpses of their conversations, so I never bothered to listen. I decided to look around once again and caught sight of my black-and-white headphones and mp3 lying on the table. My wallet's there as well as my phone, which I was glad to know that I placed a number-lock in it so that they won't be able to see the contents of it.

I rested my head on the punching bag and stared at the ceiling with unfocused eyes. Why am I here? Am I ever going to get back home? Will I make it out alive? No matter how excited I am for this world, I miss mine so much especially my home, my job, Leeroy, my games and my tech… I'm an ass to think that I may even get out of this place alive.

_Noel…_

What..?

_I believe in you, Noel…_

That voice…

_So don't give up!_

I closed my eyes and enjoyed the voice. It was soothing and calm; it made me feel happy the least. Slowly, I realized something else. That voice, now I know why it's so familiar to me. I am not sure how to describe it, but I think that I'm right about this.

_Alright, keep on believing in me, Aeris…_

* * *

Rumble, rumble, rumble…

"Wha…?" I groaned audibly as I forced myself to wake up. I think I slept there for a second when the terrorists were talking. Tiredly, my head looked up to see the pinball machine coming up as the three stopped and faced the place where the machine used to be. Seconds later, it came down, this time with a burly man, a girl and a guy coming down. It didn't take me too long to recognize Barret, Tifa, and Cloud, and but my mind's still fucked up so I can't think straight even for a bit. "Look who decided to wake up!" Ugh, Barret's too noisy. I made a face at him, but I choked up saliva when his gun arm produced a sickening punch to my gut. "Gugh!" Damn, what was that?! I furiously glared at Barret, who did so back.

Barret's build is pretty huge and was bulging with muscles. He had on a tan vest and some pants and a pair of burly boots. His gun arm's impressive though, so I have no reason to be surprised. "Huh? You givin me the silent treatment, huh, Shinra spy?!" I really wanted to kick him at the face for being so loud.

"Shut up! I'm not a Shinra spy and I don't want to do anything with them, so let me go!" I shouted at him, whose patience was wearing thin. Barret was about to hit me again with his gun arm when a hand stopped his way. Cloud looked at the leader of AVALANCHE with a passive face. "We already heard his story; we just came down here to know about how he knew about us." Us? Oh, right, AVALANCHE, I mentioned the name, Tifa beat me up to a pile of crap, and Barret's gonna literally kill me if I don't do something quick!

"How did you know about the group? Talk, if not," Cloud was all, 'Don't mess with me' thing going on at his face, but seeing as he already unsheathed his Buster Sword, I finally gave some more thought about it. "You already know what'll happen." Damn, have to think fast!

"I, uh…" My voice trailed off when the sword made way to my chin. Cloud's eyes were glowing blue again, while Tifa and the others stood behind, watching us.

"I said, talk!"

"A-alright, alright!" Shit, don't have a choice here. "I was at Sector Eight walking around until I overheard some MPs talking about AVALANCHE and the hidden rumor that the hideout's here at the Seventh Heaven bar!" Oh my god, I could be a best actor award here! I kept my mouth shut after that since silence came and took over. _Please let this work!_

"Do you know who those MPs are?" Tifa asked, bewildered for a second. I love you Tifa!

"No, they're wearing their helmets so I didn't see nor know who they are." This practically true; MPs have helmets just like infantrymen.

"What? Bullshit, why didn't you tell us sooner?" Biggs angrily yelled while I flinched at his tone of voice.

_So much for being my friend, Biggs._"How the hell should I do that! You guys were treating me like crap and I wasn't given a chance to defend myself!" That was also practically true; while they were hitting me so hard that I couldn't even think for a second! Again, silence loomed over the room. The three plus Tifa looked confused while Barret was fuming and looked ready to hit me again. Cloud, however, couldn't keep his eyes away. They were like staring deep into my soul with those eyes…

"Are you sure you're telling the truth?" GOD YES!

"Yes…" I panted, trying to keep my voice calm. Cloud slowly pulled away and placed his sword back at its normal place, his gaze cool. "He's not lying." Thank you bro! The others relaxed for a while yet Barret snorted, letting down his gun-arm. "I'm not in it, but I don't have a choice…" He shook his head as he motioned for the others to gather round again.

"Yo, listen up! Tomorrow, we're still on the mission. So I say you rest your asses and get ready for tomorrow!" Everyone nodded and then began to move away. Tifa urged Wedge and Biggs to get some dinner before bed while Jessie turned to a computer and began doing some bomb analysis and such. Only Cloud and Barret remained in front of me, both looking for the right words to say.

"What's your name?" Barret gruffly asked me.

"Noel. Just that. You?" I know their names already, but it's nice to get a proper introduction.

"Cloud."

"I'm Barret Walace and don't you forget it, smart-ass!" I chuckle at his statement. There were already lots of times where I was called a smart-ass coz I am pretty smart. "Nice to meet you then, Cloud, Barret."

"You're from Gonggaga, right?"

"Yeah, I used to."

"Hm." Cloud stared at me again with those already creepy blue eyes of his. I guess the mention of the name wasn't enough to make him remember Zack or his past. "You said you were looking for a job in Midgar. Were you gonna aim for Shinra?" Barret narrowed his eyes at me. At this, I feigned my anger and hatred as I spat out my words.

"Never. I don't want to get involved with them anymore. It was because of them, I lost my family." Those venomous things actually came out fine. It seemed that they were intimidated by my words, because the next thing Barret said made me lift my spirits. "Damn right you are! We're gonna fight them coz' they're gonna destroy the Planet!"

"I know; I heard that at Cosmo."

"We should recruit him." Cloud pondered for a while before nodding. _Awesome, Cloud. Really Awesome… _"How old are you again, kid?"

"Twenty, is that fine?" Barret let out another hearty chuckle as he nodded triumphantly.

"Good at fighting?"

"I was able to show some moves to Tifa for awhile." I felt a grin come up to my face. I guess you could say I looked pretty goofy right now. "Well, we have a mission tomorrow and we're taking you with us. You do good and you're in." Barret, you don't need to tell me again twice.

"Deal." I said with newfound confidence. Cloud wordlessly took his sword again and, _slash_! He used it to cut my ropes in a nice, really awesome slash. I felt more relieved than ever as I kneeled to the floor and massaged my body. I see a large hand came near my face as I looked up and watched Barret smirk at me.

"Welcome to AVALANCHE."

* * *

**AN: **Oh,eM,Gee! I finished the second chap with a 5,000 word spree! Yes, as you can see, Noel's really special, and that is pretty evident that he's a chick magnet. I'm truly moved by my first two reviews so again, thank you so much!

Please don't forget to review! If I'm going to be inspired, it will be coming from you, dear reader/reviewer. That will just be fifteen seconds of your life I promise!

Thanks for reading 'Through The Worlds To You'

**~Noelle Strife**


	3. Save File 3

**AN: **I'm so, so, so sorry that I didn't update. I'm too busy with school and some social crap. But I promise that this won't look too rushed coz' I already learned my lesson from the first chapter. Anyone want materia? Wait, that was a joke, okay?

Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy VII, just me, myself, and I.

**To EmperorPalamecia: **Yes, I already knew about the Sephiroth controlling Jenova thing, so don't worry about it. However, you are spot-on his strength theory! ^_^ The hint has something to do with Aeris and their 'relationship' so if you could already guess it now, then congratulations my friend you have solve the case!(joke) Anyway thank you for your review!

**To Lethum: **Oh so that is a joke… I see then XD. I can't really spoil it now, but there will be some scene with OCxgirl shipping here, since he already proclaimed himself as a 'chick magnet' but there will be one girl where he would really like and where he would end up with. I can understand that AVALANCHE feels off, since from the start I already knew there was something wrong with how I portrayed them. But I'll try to get it better, and thank you very much for your review~! :D

Please read and review~!

Enjoy Save File No. 3

**~Noelle Strife**

* * *

Through The Worlds To You  
_by Noelle Strife_

Save File Three

"Yo, kid, wake up!" I grunted at the voice and swatted their hand away from my shoulder. I feel so sore I can barely move. The shaking grew even worse until I decided to wake up now. I was in the middle of a wonderful dream about me winning the game and having some random FF girl character by my side. Damn, and they just have to wake me up here. "Alright, alright! I'm up dammnit!" I opened my green eyes and caught sight of Barret annoyingly looking down on me.

"We're going now, so get your ass up and let's go!" Saying his piece, he went to the pinball machine and went up. Yawning, I stretched up my limbs and managed to crack all my joints in place. I realized that I slept right where they let me go; near the punching bag. I noticed my headphones, my mp3, my phone and my wallet still there on the table. As I moved to retrieve them, the pinball machine once again moved and came down, revealing Cloud holding a mug of coffee, a pair of fingerless gloves, some light armor, and what looked like to be a short sword. He's wearing his SOLDIER outfit with a shoulder pad off and his Buster Sword stuck on his back. "Morning." He greeted simply as I inclined my head at him. He strode towards me with the items and pushed them into my hands, well everything except the mug of coffee, which had a label of No. 1 with a big red heart. He doesn't seem to be fazed by this because he looked as passive as usual.

I examined all the items I have with me. The gloves will be good for hand-to-hand combat and the armor and bangles are great for the Materia, although I'm a little worried for the short sword, since the only weapons training I had when I was in high school was Arnis, and I really suck at that. _No matter, _I thought to myself as I wore everything in place, _I'm inside a game, and I have all the time I need to practice._

Cloud eyed me and my belongings as he pointed towards my headphones, "What are those?" He asked bluntly as I scratched my head, trying to remember the words that I answered to Aeris's same question. Whew, sometimes I hate lying to other people.

"It helps me listen to my music." I grinned just as he shrugged and walked back to the elevator while I followed him. Strapping my short sword near me, I heard Cloud do some small talk to me, "The target's the Mako Reactor 7. We'll have a quick briefing before going to the train." I nodded at him solemnly as we rode the elevator in silence. I kept glancing at him, but his eyes were closed and he was kinda humming a tune of Cloud's Theme or the World Map theme. I just listened to him while thinking.

It may sound weird, but Cloud is pretty much like the Cloud that I knew inside and out. Hell, after playing the game, I researched each and every one of them, including Shinra and his cronies, including every monster and Materia, everyone and everything in this world. I even memorized it just in case something happens in the game that needs my aid; although the part about being sucked inside the game is very introverted.

When we reached Tifa's bar, the first thing I saw is the whole group gathering around while Tifa's at her bar counter, wiping glasses and listening to a radio. Marlene's at a corner, playing with her paper dolls. Instinctively, my hand felt into my pocket and produced the flower I got from Aeris. I remember one of the scenes here as I smiled cheerfully and walked over to the little girl. She stared at me with nervous eyes, but they softened when they saw the flower, "Oh, what a beautiful flower!" She exclaimed as I thrust it to her. She accepted it giddily while I ruffled her hair.

"Thank you very much, Mr. Noel!"

"Haha, well, you could just call me Noel now, Marlene." The child smiled at me when she suddenly hugged my leg. I looked at her affectionately while stroking her hair. _Cute girl._ "Alright then!" Barret turned around to look at what's happening and stiffened when he saw his little girl hugging my leg, her face is beaming while I, too, smiled awkwardly. "Noel, come over here now, the briefing's gonna start!" Barret shouted at me as Marlene let go and trotted off to play somewhere else. I went towards the group and sat on a chair. "Alright, everyone's here! Our mission is to blow up Mako Reactor 7!" The huge man declared; his gun arm held high as everyone cheered, all except me and Cloud of course. The ex-SOLDIER was leaning against the wall with an apparently bored expression while I was slumped on my chair looking ready to hit the hay again.

"We'll be splitting up in two teams. Biggs, Wedge and Jessie will go on ahead to the Reactor while me, Cloud, and Noel will go up by the train's roof. Once we're there at the station we head out and go with the plan!" As much as how Barret's analogies were, this sounded kinda awesome. The meeting was adjourned as I stood up and took the offered apple given to me from Tifa. _"Be safe you lot. I'll make you dinner when you come back." _That's what she said as we set off to the station. Cloud was indifferent as always while the other man's breathing down my neck. "Come on you two hurry up!" Really, it's early morning and we have to do this?

* * *

The cold rush of the wind was unable to contain my excitement.

When we climbed up the top of the train, there were a lot of things we did over there. We're just to avoid the many overhead signs that are too low and we have to dodge, duck and roll. I laughed out loud when the blond got hit by a Midgar sign while I doubled up on the ground. Of course, he was embarrassed and glared at me, but he, in turn, sniggered when I got hit by a LOVELESS headboard. Well, at least we're equal now. Barret however, got lucky and didn't even break a sweat when we're avoiding the signs. Eventually, we were able to stay put and let the train take us to the Sector's Reactor.

I sat on my back, arms crossed under my head as I watched the black sky/ceiling. Midgar, a floating city, a plate above the sky, it was all lies as long as the people were able to get outside and take a good look about this place. Plus, Shinra's worse than ever, although the case about Rufus funding AVALANCHE at Before Crisis really moved me, in here Rufus will be a ruthless President hunting our necks. If we aren't careful in our journey to save Aeris and the Planet, we'll die early before defeating Sephiroth.

"We're here now foo's! Get ready!" Barret shouted at the din for me and Cloud to hear. I didn't notice that we're nearly there as Cloud stood up from his spot, his grip on his Buster Sword and gazed at the Shinra tower, his stare already menacing. Really cool pose there Cloud. I turned my attention back at Barret and rolled my eyes, "Yeah, yeah whatever you say, boss man." I said with a chuckle. The train was speeding away and we're nearing our destination, Mako Reactor Seven.

_Screech!_

The train screeched to a halt at the station. There were guards stationed at their flanks but as expected, Jessie leaped out of the door and expertly kicked the guards out of consciousness. Biggs and Wedge came out of the rear and quickly scaled the place, finding the route to the Reactor. The three disappeared behind an archway as Barret jumped off the train. "Come on, newcomers, I'll show you the way!" Having said that, he made way to the pathway without looking back. I straddled my legs as I bounded off the roof. I braced myself for impact as I rolled to the ground and got up, completely unharmed. Cloud was next. Being an ex-SOLDIER has its charms too. He was able to get down without any problems. Cloud stood up as we nodded at each other and began sprinting to the Reactor.

Suddenly, two Shinra infantrymen came up from behind the archway with their guns drawn. Cloud instinctively grabbed his sword from his back and began slashing the infantrymen. I'm still not used to my short sword so I just stuck onto my gloves. Bullets rained down on us as we dodged their ammo while we each took some consecutive hits, a deep slash on one guy, and a punch to the gut on the other. Both men slumped to the ground as we took off to the path. But before we left, I searched through the pockets of the guards and each took a Potion from them. The walkway was pretty straightforward as Cloud and I traversed in silence. It's kinda weird since from here there was this visible aura coming off of him. Somewhere in front of us I could see the silhouetted forms of Biggs, Wedge, and Jessie. Barret's nowhere to be seen but I'm not worried since he'll appear later on. Minutes later, we arrived at the Reactor's gates.

Jessie was trying to deactivate the security of the gates while Biggs and Wedge were on lookout duty. "Hey, we haven't really formally met huh? What's your name?" Wedge's just being friendly, but Cloud, being the emotic bastard that he is in the first game, only responded, "Cloud." Deciding to break the ice a little more, I waved cheerfully at the three. "You can call me Noel!" Wedge smiled at me while Biggs grinned thoughtfully.

"Cloud and Noel, huh..? Well, my name is-"

"I don't care about your names. When this mission's done, I'm outta here." Ouch, Cloud, totally ouch. Jessie looked over from her shoulder with an apparently confused look. "Aren't you from SOLDIER? What's he doing here with us in AVALANCHE..?" At this, Biggs shook his head.

"He WAS in SOLDIER, Jessie. He quit them and now is one of us." I gotta admire the spirit of these three. Shame that they have to die sometime in the game. I look down to my hands and clench a fist. Whatever may happen, I'm going to save them. I'm going to prevent the plate fall on Sector 7, prevent Shinra from getting their way. And most of all, prevent Aeris from dying in the hands of Sephiroth.

I was too caught up in my own mind, that I didn't notice Barret already lashing out orders, "The hell you all doin'?! I thought I told you never to move in a group!" The muscular man then pointed to the structure of the place we're gonna bomb. "Our target's the North Mako Reactor. We'll meet on the bridge in front of it!" The group saves for me and Cloud again, nodded at him then headed off to the building once the gate was open. But before we made a move, Barret stopped in his tracks and turned to Cloud with a sour look on his face.

"Ex-SOLDIER, huh? Don't trust ya!" He jeered at him before he went on his way. I followed him as I watched Cloud stare a bit at the Reactor prior to following Barret inside the depths of the place. We ran until we reached the bridge, Wedge split up from us at the intersection. As I watched the round man run off to the other side, I felt someone push me to the ground roughly, "Get down!" Cloud's face loomed into view as bullets ricocheted. Three Shinra MPs. Thinking fast, I ran for cover while the blond used his sword to block. Seriously, how can he block guns with a sword..? Well, in Cloud's case, his Buster Sword can do almost anything; except be used as a snowboard/skateboard.

"Noel! Catch!" I turned my head to see a small, green orb flying towards me. I grabbed it with a fist and stared at it shockingly. So this is materia… Further inspection of it, I say it's one of Cloud's materia, Ice. I was taken off guard at how small it is, like the size of a golf ball, yet light as marbles. I looked at it more closely and there seems to be a small, blue ice crystal residing inside it. Nodding at the blond swordsman, who took off and slashed at one MP, I flicked the ball of magic and watched it sink into my right glove. I suddenly felt a surge of power forcing itself inside me as I doubled over for a bit. Weird. Has materia always been like this for the first timers? As soon as the power washed over, I could feel a new one pulsing. It was something I could relish on, albeit with a taste of tang, and an instant coolness. I stood up from spot, raised my arm and pointed it at the guards, my mouth curving into a grin.

"Ice!"

The action soon followed after the words. I was awed at the sight of a giant snowflake that bursted from an MP as said MP collapsed on the ground, dead and unmoving. The feeling completely disappeared as I shakily gulped nervously. _I… I killed someone… _"You did well." Cloud seemed to have finished off the other two as he said it. He placed a hand on my shoulder, looking pretty smug. For some odd reason, I wanted to punch him. I don't know why, but it may be because of the fact that I just killed someone _for the first time in my life _and he just got the guts to say that I did well. I wanted to crumple on the ground and cry, but all I did is gave him a small smile and a nod.

"Y-yeah, let's go." Brushing him off, I sprinted off inside the Reactor, leaving Cloud a little confused. The guy at the station? I didn't slaughter him, just knocked unconscious. But the guy I just beat the hell out earlier? That, I killed him horribly. I grit my teeth as I finally saw Barret in a distance. Am I considered a murderer now? …But Cloud and the others always kick everyone's ass. Maybe I should get used to this; anyway, it's just a game.

_{Are you sure about that?}_

Barret spotted me and waved with one meaty arm, "Yo! This your first time in a reactor?" I assume Cloud has already followed me so I didn't say anything. Lucky for me, said emotic bastard shrugged and turned away from Barret, "No. After all, I did work for Shinra, y'know." Fat chance, Cloud. Just because you have Zack's memories with you doesn't mean you should act arrogant as you are right now.

The big man continued on, "The planet's full of Mako energy. People here use it every day." Everyone except me and AVALANCHE of course. "It's the life blood of the planet. But Shinra keeps suckin the blood out with these machines." Cloud shrugged again with an indifferent face, "I'm not here for a lecture. Let's just hurry." With that, Barret's face got redder as he got angrier with his attitude. Hiding my snicker with a gloved hand, I smirked at the two, "Calm down, guys. It's only the beginning of the mission." The swordsman and the gunman shot a passive glare at me, which I ignored. In the end, Barret shook his head, looking pissed at us. "That's it! You two are coming with me!" I saw Cloud shift his eyes towards me, and I noted that small twist of smile coming up his mouth. Surprise, surprise…

Biggs was crouched down on the security system, a look of concentration etched upon his face. "All right~ Code deciphered!" The gates instantly opened much to their chagrin as we moved on. Jessie and Biggs would help decipher the codes while Barret was looking out for enemies. During the time we're at the second area, I scouted the place to look for something. Cloud was curious but he did not come along. Eventually, I came across some stray monsters and a few guard bots, and of course, a Phoenix Down. Just as I thought, it was very light and fluffy, but the blue color attracted me the most. Wordlessly, I dug it into my pockets and went back to the area, where Jessie already cracked the code. We got into the elevator while the girl pointed at the switch.

"Push that button over there."

"Right o'!"

As we rode the elevator down, Barret began to speak once again, "Little by little the reactors'll drain out all life. And that'll be that." I don't get it with Barret; is he trying to coax Cloud to give in more thought in joining AVALANCHE? Cloud shrugged again, "It's not my problem." Damn emotic bastard…

"The planet's dyin' Cloud!" The man became more pissed than ever. I stood by Jessie trying to ignore the conversation, but it's too late since it is already giving me a headache.

"The only thing I care about is finishin' this job before security and the Roboguards come." Cloud gave off a heated gaze at him while crossing his arms. Barret turns away, shaking with anger, but looks back at him with an unreadable look. Wow, how these two made up I will know later on. I ran a gloved hand through my mousse hair and stared at the two, waiting for the lift to come down to our designated place.

* * *

Professor Hojo once again looked up from his paperwork, obviously looking irritated and quite annoyed. He just had a small talk with the President regarding about the Promise Land, which he still does not believe in, and of the Ancients. No, that is not what is irritating him.

What _is _irritating him is that his prized specimen just disappeared and hit by a dead end.

It is so far a lucky chance that he started up one of his oldest machines to trace down some more Ancients, but what fascinated him the most is that a strange anomaly has just joined the race of human civilization. He dispatched most of his men to retrieve the specimen, yet by the time they arrived at the scene, said specimen was already gone. It infuriated him at how this, this _thing, _just started moving on its own, where it should not be. Hojo piled some research paper unto the linoleum floor and began making calculations; mostly about how it got in and what it is. Well, whatever it is, he will find it.

He smiled sickeningly. Oh, how much fun he will have with this thing, no matter what it is, he will discover its secret for not being human, most especially that this just appeared out of nowhere. Like a magic trick from a foolish magician. An incredible source of information. Maybe it will be the key to all problems. Hojo laughed at the thought. Even though the Ancient girl is as important to his research, this one is much more important to the point that he will do almost anything just to get this _thing_.

His phone vibrated as a call tried to make itself in. Hojo lazily pressed the button and listened to what said caller has to say, _"When are we taking her?" _The voice belonged to a very skilled marksman, an excellent Turk which served him well, Tseng. The man giggled inceptively, already thinking of the many things he will do to the Ancient.

"As soon as you can, Tseng." The caller seemed to pause for a bit, then recovered his thoughts, _"Understood. I will dispatch Reno to the case."_ The call ended and Hojo slicked back his greasy hair, looking more mad than usual.

"What an interesting anomaly…"

* * *

"Weird boxed things at twelve o' clock!" I grit my teeth just as said boxed things used _a freaking missile _on me! I rolled on my back as Barret jumped into the fray, shouting curses left and right. Cloud was too busy with a Roboguard while I stayed with the other to back him up. "Die foo'!" Barret then reeled back to smash the box as I focused on one of them.

"Ice!" I raised my arm and focused all the energy into it. A huge snowflake exploded from the guard as it detonated and disintegrated on the spot. Grinning, I made a leap and performed a resounding kick at another one, knocking off its circuits and shutting it down. Cloud and Barret were able to finish off their own share as I stood up straighter and stretched my joints, yawning, "Ah… Now that's a good fight!" I grinned cheerfully as Cloud and Barret walked up to me, looking safe from the fight. We then continued our way deeper into the reactor. The place stunk like a mixture of gasoline and the sewers. Jumping down from the ladder as Jessie instructed us, I caught a glimpse of the sea of mako underneath us. I'm only being honest if I said it actually looked dauntingly beautiful. Something about it is giving me the chills though. The three of us walked in silence and kept a watchful eye for enemies when we finally reached our target. I spied the Restore materia just inches in front of us but I didn't move to get it.

"When we blow this place, this ain't gonna be nothin' more than hunka of junk." Barret turned to Cloud and handed him a ridiculously unreformed looking bomb with a clock facing up, meant for the countdown. Seriously, it looked like it was just two sticks of dynamite tied together with duct tape and corded to a clock. Probably shouldn't say this upfront with Jessie though… "Cloud you set the bomb." The blond furrowed his eyebrows at him with a glare and said, "Shouldn't you do it?"

"Jus' do it! I gotta watch to make sure you don't pull nothin'."

"Fine, be my guest." Cloud strode towards the core of the reactor but suddenly stopped, a look of pain suddenly appeared. When I rushed forward to help him, I, too, stopped in my tracks.

_{Watch out!}_

What…the hell..? I gripped my head as I grimaced. A sheer edge of pain grasped my temples as I tried to block it as well as that mysterious voice. I began to panic. I wasn't supposed to hear Cloud's thoughts! These were his and his alone!

_{This isn't just a reactor!}_

"Make it…stop…" I muttered subconsciously, feeling my knees weakening. But as soon as it came it just passed over, gone. I vigorously shook my head to keep unwanted thoughts away. Damn, that voice… It definitely wasn't Aeris… So, who..?

"What's wrong?" Barret asked. I turned to him then at Cloud, shrugging. "Dunno, whatever it is, better hurry it up then, Cloud!" I raised my voice at his name, so that I can shake him from his thoughts. Cloud rubbed his head, mumbling an apology as he began to set up the bomb. He tucked it near the gears and widgets of the core and set the timer.

Just then, an earsplitting noise erupted as soon as he pressed it. A low rumbling was heard, followed by a loud crash coming from behind us. I readied my fists as Barret twisted around to point his gun arm at our guest. "Heads up, here they come!"

The smoke cleared and a gigantic, spider-like robot appeared in front of us, its guns were already drawn and pointed at us. Cloud yelled for us to scatter, just as it used its machine guns on us. Bullets came down hard as I dodged, ducked and rolled around the place. The bigger man cursed the robot with his middle finger while spraying it with ammo coming from him. The ex-SOLDIER however, was able to even move while casting out Bolt magic at the motherfucker. He always has to place his sword back at its spot before casting his magic. Small traces of lightning bolts pierced the robot, making it screech uncomically, a few of its circuits were combusting, and it will only take some more Bolt magic to finally kick this thing's ass.

I side stepped one of its rifles which were poised at me and emitted another Ice spell. I directed it towards the guns so that they will be tranquilized. I have to figure out how to kill this thing before the ten minute counting spree kick in. Barret and Cloud were mildly injured thanks to my efforts of throwing random Potions at them. I don't do much damage with just my punches and kicks; only my Ice materia can reach standards like that. I looked around myself to find something, anything that might defeat it once and for all. As I turned and twisted, my eyes finally caught sight of my short sword, hanging dumbly by my waist.

All of a sudden, a wild idea started to form inside my already twisted mind.

Grand Scorpion twitched and vibrated, its tail began to rise up in an alarming rate. Barret stopped gattling his gun while Cloud stopped casting, their eyes widening at the thing that it's going to do. I quickly ran up to them, shouting, "Guys don't hit it! It will counterattack with its laser!" I stopped between them, my short sword already out of it's sheathe. "What do you mean we can't hit it? Counterattack? How the hell did you know that?!" Barret roared, a vein already popping from a temple. Cloud also looked like he was in need of an explanation, but I pay no heed to him.

"Listen," I placed my hands unto the blond's shoulders and inched him near me. "On the count of three, Barret will boost me up to the Scorpion's head and I'll stab the head with my sword." I ignored said man's face, who produced a 'wtf' look. "Then Cloud, you cast your strongest Bolt magic yet, and direct it towards the sword. The sword will act as an electric rod, gathering all the energy, and zap straight into the head and to the heart!" Cloud gaped at me, but nodded as he placed his Buster Sword at his back and began to gather enormous amounts of energy, or rather mana from what I can tell since they're mana points, while Barret just stared at me frantically, "And what the hell am I gonna do again?" God, if we don't do this, Grand Scorpion will recover from epilepsy mode and get back on kicking our ass mode!

"You just throw me at that thing's head, stupid!"

"Why, you..!"

"Alright, on the count of three!" I positioned myself on Barret's hands, waiting for the countdown to catapult me to the thing's head. I nodded at them and gave them a grin and a thumbs up.

"One!" Grand Scorpion was twitching and rolling around, totally like in an epilepsy mode.

"Two!" Barret stared at me nervously, as if wanting to say something.

"Hey shouldn't we-?"

"THREE!"

The cold air blasted at me as the man heaved and threw me at the thing easily, as if I was like a softball. I probably shouted a rude word coz' I'm not hearing anything, except for the in battle clashing and fighting things. However, Barret must have had a pretty good aim as the top head of the robot came into view. I gripped onto my short sword very hard and brought it down to completely crash onto the monster's circuits. There was a low rumble as I heard Cloud at last scream the words, "BOLT!" as artificial lightning burst through his materia and towards the sword. I jumped out of the way as I watched it flail around the floor, the lightning coursing through its body thanks to my authentic electric rod. After a few more minutes of whizzes and bangs, the Grand Scorpion was no more as it collapsed on the ground, off duty forever.

I sighed and panted breath. Okay, that was typically a dangerous idea, since we could've been hit by its scorpion tail, which thankfully did not. My left shoulder had a small graze of a stray bullet but, meh, nothing to worry about. I moved towards the robot and scavenged through its remains. Ah! There's the new gun equipment for Barret, and something else. As I dug through, I came upon a big stash of Gil and some Potions that we could use. My short sword, apparently, is beyond repair, so the only thing I can obtain from it is the small hilt of the sword. It's for the good memories, okay?! Satisfied with my findings, I lay on my back to catch my breath, only until Cloud nudged me forcefully as if it's urgent. "Hey, get up! We need to get out of here! The bomb's gonna detonate in ten minutes!" Oh, shit! I completely forgot about the bomb! I jumped onto my feet just as Barret ran ahead to signal Jessie and Biggs to get out. Just as I was about to exit the place, Cloud stopped for a bit, bent down, and snatched up the Restore materia into his grasp.

Damn, even I forgot about the materia.

We raced back to the entrance of the Reactor. We climbed the ladder up after battling some persistent guardbots, when I noticed Jessie kneeling on one of the metallic beams, her face scrunched in pain. "Need any help?" I grin as I rushed to her side and wiggled her leg off the crisscrossing metal grates. The girl gave me a bright smile and sprinted off with me. Cloud, Jessie, and I got into the elevator and hastily pressed the button up. Many more guardbots tried to take advantage of us, but the ex-SOLDIER wouldn't have it and slew them with his Bolt magic from his leftover MP. Heh, I just love to call it MP/HP even if they don't understand it.

"Hurry! We got two minutes left!" We finally got off the elevator and at the bridge. Biggs and Wedge stood there waiting for us as a loud explosion sounded from the depths of the reactor. Huh, guess that bomb wasn't so itty bitty to me anymore. The ground shook but we forced ourselves to keep running and running. My legs are starting to ache but I pushed on. Jessie trips to her knees, but Cloud was quick enough to help her up. We sprinted away safely as the Reactor blasted into bursting inferno. I could hear the explosions through my headphones; they're something like they always do in movies, animes and games. Pretty cool, I say.

* * *

…

_Noel..?_

…

* * *

I opened my eyes slowly and sighed.

We are all standing in a dark tunnel which was blocked by the debris and broken metal from the explosion. We were here for about fifteen minutes because Jessie was trying to figure out her calculations and bombs on how to blow up the debris and open a way to the station. I'm no bomb expert so I didn't help. I stood a good distance away from them, my headphones were kept on as I listened quietly to my music, contemplating my life so far.

So far, it was… exhilarating. Nothing I've ever conceived in my life. I didn't know I could punch/kick people/monsters, I just casted a spell from a materia, I defeated a boss battle using my cunning skill (cough), I escaped with only my wits from an explosion, and yet I have no idea if this matters to going home or not. I can't help but feel a little homesick, even if it's for a little while. Oddly though, thinking about Aeris just reminds me of home too much. Maybe because she's really pretty and that somewhere in my imaginations I'll be taking her to see my family and proclaim her as wife? Nonononononono! I shook my head at the thought, my cheeks beginning to redden. I'm such a jerk to think about stuff like that! Me and Aeris are different. I'm real, she's from a video game. I'm reality, she's beauty. Wait, what?!

I tried to clear my head with my music when I felt a hand clamp onto my shoulder. My green eyes met Cloud's mako blue ones, "You okay?" He questioned softly, trying to cheer me up. I smiled wanly at him and said, "Yeah, still just shaken up, that's all." Encouragement, not what I really needed, but it will have to do.

"Okay! Now everyone get back!" Jessie seemed finished with her preparations as we all backed up into the cramped little space to hide from another explosion. A loud bang resounded from the direction we were from, followed up by an earsplitting crack that shrouded the silence. Fire and smoke appeared as we all nodded at each other and ran out of the place and towards outside.

"Gugh!" I grunted as I jumped from an opening flame and I quickly rolled on my back to prevent the flames from burning me. We're at the courtyard of some Sector, probably Sector Eight. Barret and the others came next. The last one to get out was Wedge, and it seems that his butt was on fire… "All right, now let's get out of here!" Barret moved further into the courtyard and pointed north. "Rendezvous at Sector 8 station! Split up and get on the train!" Afterwards, everyone headed off at different directions.

I saw Cloud stop Barret though, "H-hey!"

Barret stopped and shot a heated stare at him, "If it's about your money save it 'till we're back at the hideout!" And without another word, he ran off without looking back. I pity Cloud, for not getting his money straight out, but, oh well. We made eye contact and it was inaudible agreement that from now on, we stick as team. I know right! It sounds so awesome coming from a video game character, especially the main one!

We took the stairs that lead us to a marketplace. Here, we found a lot of people scurrying around, obviously peeved at the sight of a smoked up reactor just moments away from this place. At a street corner, a few people were running around, until one of them knocked over a pretty lady clad in pink. Knowing who it was, I strode over to her confidently and struck out my hand, "Need any help, miss?" I smiled at her who took my hand as she made herself stand up. Wow, to see Aeris once again, it's making my stomach do back flips. I notice Cloud coming over at the corner of my eye but I inwardly ignored him and focused all my attention at Aeris. "Thank you very much sir…" Oh wow, she looks sooo cute…

"Ah, we meet again, my flower lady."

"Hm?"

Aeris peered closer at my face and almost gasped at the sight of me. "N-Noel?! Noel, it's you!" She exclaimed, her eyes wide with anticipation. I chuckle lightly at her reaction as I watched her dust the dirt from her dress. "Yup, the one and only~" We laughed at this just as Cloud finally came by. "Noel, we should get a move on." He budged but I simply smiled at him. Aeris must've noticed how dirty and battle worn we are right now, so she asked, "Excuse me, what happened?" The question's directed at Cloud so I didn't answer. The blond swordsman turned to gaze at the woman in front of us with his cool mako eyes. They shifted to her face, then to her form, back to the face, and then to the flower basket she was holding close to her chest. The flowers were looking a lot livelier than I last saw them from before.

"Nothing… hey Listen…" Cloud pegged for Aeris attention.

"Don't see many flowers…" At this, the flower girl held them up close, a proud smile at her face.

"Oh, these? Do you like them? They're only a gil..?" Figuring what he'd say, I flashed some Gil from my gloved hand and a triumphant smirk from my face.

"Two please!"

Aeris seemed delighted at this request. Browsing through her flowers, she picked out a green Gladiolus and a beautiful Forget-Me-Not one. She gave the forget-me-not to Cloud and the gladiolus to me as I pay up to her. I even left in some extra change in her basket when she's not looking. "Till we meet again then, my flower lady~!" I waved at her goodbye as Aeris walked away. She giggled feverishly at my antics while Cloud merely stared at the flower. "Why'd you buy me one?" He asked me bluntly as we moved along. I placed the gladiolus in my front pocket as I beamed at him.

"You'd probably give it to someone anyway, am I right?" We spoke no more as we traversed through the area. I spotted a Potion nearby, so when Cloud wasn't looking, I made a grab for it and pocketed it safely in my waist pack. Out of the marketplace, we reached an empty street. I already know what will happen, so I readied my fists just in case. Cloud also looked on high alert. Nothing came around when we turned to the next block when-

"Hey, you there!" Crap. The both of us had no choice but to look. A Shinra MP. Should we fight em? I wanted to make eye contact with the blond again, but he was looking impassive as usual. His fingers however, are already curled up into a fist. If we fight, it'll be a waste of time. But if we run, we might still be able to reach the station and get on the train on time.

"Noel…" Cloud whispered to me, his eyes cold and are glaring fiercely at the MP, who was walking nearer and nearer, "On my signal, we run at the edge of the bridge and wait for the train. Even if it's to fight them off." Wait, what?! I wanted to object, but another MP appeared. I sighed audibly before nodding in affirmation.

"What are you two do-"

"Run!"

As soon as Cloud gave the signal I was already running towards the vantage point. It wasn't that far, nothing my legs can't handle, but holy crap, another MP's coming our way! I had to think fast, so when my hand felt its way towards the hilt of my sword, I threw said hilt at the MP in front of me, distracting him as I pulled an all-around kick at him. Cloud was at my rear and backing me up from the back side. Darn it, more MPs appeared. At this rate we'll be-!

"That's as far as you go." The soldier calmly said, their batons were flashed as they cornered us at the railings. Honestly, if they moved some more, me and Cloud would've fallen to our death now. "I don't have time to be messin' around with you guys." Cool words, Cloud. Real, cool, words.

"Enough babbling! Grab them!" I wasn't sure I heard their words right, because as soon as they groped on us, I heard the loud honk of a train coming near. I noticed Cloud gesturing at the train as the both of us jumped from the railing and unto the roof of the train, said train speeding down the tunnel and out of sight.

* * *

Somewhere inside the train, at the farthest car, a group of rough looking people are all sitting around, looking a bit glum and remorseful. Barret, Biggs, Wedge, and Jessie always knew that messing with Shinra will have to take lives, but…

"Cloud and Noel never came." Wedge stated the obvious, staring at his friends.

"Cloud…Noel…wonder if they were killed?" Biggs said as Barret looked up from his contemplation and let out a hoarse voice, "No way!" His burst up came out rather surprising as the three gazed back at him. But he had nothing to say anymore, he looked down to his feet. Jessie sighed, momentarily muttering their names, "Cloud…Noel…"

_THUMP! THUMP!_

Barret looked up from his spot at the ceiling and wondered what was going on outside.

~0~0~

_THUNK! _"OhMyGodWhatTheFuck!" I screamed a very loud curse when my head hit the archway's alcove. Cloud gave me a sign to shut up but hell, I can't help it. The intense pain was already swelling up in my crotch. I raised my middle finger at the blond, who rolled his eyes at me and continued to trek down the train slowly and carefully.

~0~0~

The group was silent once again. Although Biggs spoke up once more to his leader, "Say, do you think Cloud and Noel's going to fight to the end for AVALANCHE?!" At this, Barret sent a glare at his way.

"The hell would I know? Do I look like a mind reader?" He hits a crate in response. It's quite obvious that the big guy's quite upset that Cloud and Noel weren't able to meet up with them, and it may probably be his fault for breaking his promise to Tifa for not protecting the two. "Hmph! If y'all weren't such screw-ups…" He turned away to hide his sad face.

"Hey Barret! What about our money..?" Barret hit the crate again, out of anger this time.

"Uhh, nothing…sorry. Ah…" Wedge relaxed on a sack of potatoes and tried to doze for a bit.

_THUNK! THUNK!_ Everyone looked up at the same time at the ceiling to check what's going on.

_THUNK! THUNK! _The thunking seemed to be getting closer…

_THUNK! THUNK! _The train door suddenly opens and two figures flipped inside the car from above. The one revealed as Cloud because of his blond hair, and the other Noel, who was sputtering rude words mutely. Everyone jumped at the sight of them.

"Cloud! Noel!"

"Cloud…Noel…"

"Cloud! Noel!"

Cloud brushed the soot from his SOLDIER clothes and shrugged smugly, "Looks like we're a little late." I went along with it and gave off a silly grin, "Uh-huh, we were a bit lost and Cloud was too stubborn to ask for directions." Biggs, Wedge and Jessie laughed but Barret was seething with rage.

"You damn right, you're late! Come waltzin' in here makin a big scene!" Barret probably needs to get his heart rate checked. Cloud shrugged again, a hand on his hips while the other was acknowledging him, "It's no big deal. Just what I always do."

"Shi't! Havin' everyone worried like that you don't give a damn bout' no one but yourself!" Barret screamed at him again, however Cloud still didn't lose his cool.

"Hmm….You were worried about me!?" The gun man did a double take.

"Wha-?! I'm takin' it outta your money, hot stuff!" He steadily walked himself at the center of the car, waving his gun arm.

"Wake up! We're movin' out! Follow me!" And at that he disappeared into the next car. Biggs, Wedge, and Jessie were giving out their thanks and compliments to us, even the girl helped with our faces, which were covered with sooth and dirt apparently. Cloud and I followed the members into the next car, finding ourselves with a comfortable compartment where a hobo sat sleeping on his seat and most of the occupants were moving upwards to avoid the team. I heard a computer intercom saying something about the time, which is midnight, five minutes past it. Most of the members are near the intercom so I myself just plopped on a seat and watched the scenes drift by from the window. Cloud was being called by Jessie, probably to look at the map of Midgar. Biggs was sleeping while leaning on a pole. Wedge's eating a wafer or something. And Barret's lounging like nobody cares.

A red light came by but almost decapitated as soon as it came. It must be the ID checkpoint, something Shinra was very proud off. I placed on the headphones again and listened. Coincidentally, the track was Rain Tears by Hatsume Miku. I kinda missed being an otaku and attending cosplay conventions and meeting Alodia and banging her every single cosplay convention I went through. Sigh, the ol' days are usually the best.

"Look…you can see the surface now." Barret proclaimed, staring outside to the sky. "This city don't have no day or night. If that plate weren't there," He pointed his thumb at the plate above us right now. "We could see the sky." Cloud walked up to him and looked out of the window.

"A floating city… Pretty unsettling scenery." He said dryly, continuing to look outside. I tilted my head at them as Barret stood up and crossed his arms. "Huh? Never expect to hear that outta someone like you."

"…you jes' full of surprises." Barret smirked at Cloud who glared at him annoyingly. He lifted his gun arm and gazed at it thoughtfully. "The upper world… a city on a plate… It's cuz' of that &^#$# 'pizza', that people underneath are sufferin'!" Just like the Philippines, blinded by its own government…

I listened to the gun man more, "And the city below is full of polluted air. On topa' that, the Reactor keeps drainin' all up the energy."

"Then why doesn't everyone move onto the plate?"

"Dunno. Probably 'cuz they ain't got no money. Or maybe…" He then turns to me with calm eyes. "'Cuz they love their land, no matter how polluted it gets." I nodded at him, almost resolutely. Midgar was just a small town, until Shinra came. Like I said from before, if the people were able to get out of this hellhole and take a good look on this place, they'll probably have second thoughts in living Midgar now.

Cloud bobbed his head for verification yet he still watched the view outside, "I know…no one lives in the slums because they want to. It's like this train," A faint glimmer of sadness crossed his face before it disappeared entirely. "It can't run anywhere except where its rail take it."

Total stillness took place. I resumed to my headphones until I realized my mp3 was already dead. Sighing, I took it off and then I began whistling. I'm good at it, since my students said that it's really cool whenever I whistle them in class. Lying there with my hands to support my head, I whistled a soft tune of Brand New Days by Yumi Kawamura. It's the credits song for the game, Persona 3: the Answer. While I was tuning, everyone seemed to have relaxed at my choice of song. Barret closed his eyes and looked to have dozed off, while Cloud tapped his foot in an attempt to synchronize with the beat. They look like an odd pair, like a coach captain and a kid trying to prove himself. Chuckling, I continued to whistle as the train carried on upwards to Sector 7 station.

* * *

**AN: **Hi guys again I'm so sorry for the late update! –bows apologetically- Although, I hope you enjoyed the 8,000 worded chapter, so I must stop here and take a short break before going to the next one.

Please don't forget to review! If I'm going to be inspired, it will be coming from you, dear reader/reviewer. That will just be fifteen seconds of your life I promise!

Thanks for reading 'Through The Worlds To You'

**~Noelle Strife**


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